Russia halts sale of stake in Bashneft oil firm: reports

The Russian government has unexpectedly halted the sale of its stake in oil producer Bashneft planned as part of a privatisation drive to shore up dwindling financial reserves, reports said Wednesday.AFP | August 17, 2016, 16:47 IST

Moscow: The Russian government has unexpectedly halted the sale of its stake in oil producer Bashneft planned as part of a privatisation drive to shore up dwindling financial reserves, reports said Wednesday.

The decision to postpone the sale indefinitely, reportedly taken by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and agreed with President Vladimir Putin, came after the economy ministry collected bids from interested companies for the sale -- worth $4.7 billion according to various estimates.

The Russian government owns 50.08 percent of the company, while a quarter plus one share is held by the Bashkortostan region on the Volga region where Bashneft is based.

The government's stake was part of its privatisation drive for this year, according to a May decree.

Neither Medvedev's press spokesman nor the economy ministry have responded to an AFP request for comment.